Organic light emitting diode display panel, trace structure and organic light emitting diode display apparatus

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a trace structure of an organic light emitting diode display panel, including an array substrate, wherein the trace structure of the organic light emitting diode display panel includes an outer lead region disposed on a substrate of the array substrate. Two metal trace layers which are mutually insulated are disposed on the outer lead region. A bending region is configured to the outer lead region. Traces of the two metal trace layers and a center line of the bending region are arranged with a non-orthogonal included angle and the metal trace layers connect the organic light emitting diode display panel with external electrical signals.

CROSS REFERENCE

This is a continuation application of co-pending U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 15/743,247 filed on Jan. 9, 2018, which is a national stage ofPCT Application No. PCT/CN2017/112970, filed on Nov. 25, 2017, claimingforeign priority of Chinese Patent Application No. 2017105307151,entitled “Organic Light Emitting Diode Display Panel, Trace Structureand Organic Light Emitting Diode Display Apparatus”, filed on Jun. 30,2017, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a display panel field, and moreparticularly to a trace structure of an organic light emitting diodedisplay panel, an organic light emitting diode display panel and anorganic light emitting diode display device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

At present, the mainstream technologies in the flat panel displayindustry are LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and OLED (OrganicLight-Emitting Diode). The OLED is more flexible than LCD and candiversify the display forms.

The TFT (thin film transistor) substrate of the OLED adopts a flexibleboard as a substrate to dispose TFTs. Then, the OLED light emittinglayer, the TFT package layer, the polarizer and the glass cover plateare sequentially arranged on the TFT substrate. The outer lead region isarranged on the same side of the substrate where the TFT substrate isconfigured. The outer lead region is used to arrange the driving chip,the flexible circuit board for connection and to arrange the metal tracelayers of the OLED light emitting layer and the chip circuit board. Atpresent, the main way to realize the flexibility is to bend the portionof the substrate having the outer lead region to the back side of theentire TFT substrate. Accordingly, the metal trace layer must be bent,together. The metal trace layer after being bent is in a bent state andsuffers a certain stress. The bending stress of the substrate is largerand the metal trace layer can be easily broken as being bent with thesubstrate, together.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a trace structure of an organic lightemitting diode display panel to solve the technical problem that a metaltrace layer is broken when an outer lead region is bent.

The present invention provides a trace structure of an organic lightemitting diode display panel, comprising an array substrate, wherein thetrace structure of the organic light emitting diode display panelcomprises an outer lead region disposed on a substrate of the arraysubstrate; wherein two metal trace layers which are mutually insulatedare disposed on the outer lead region, a bending region is configured tothe outer lead region, traces of the two metal trace layers and a centerline of the bending region are arranged with a non-orthogonal includedangle and the two metal trace layers connect the organic light emittingdiode display panel with external electrical signals.

The two metal trace layers are arranged in a thickness direction of theorganic light emitting diode display panel and are insulated by aninsulation layer.

The array substrate comprises a TFT (thin film transistor) switch and agate insulation layer formed on the substrate, wherein a first metaltrace layer of the two metal trace layers is arranged on the gateinsulation layer of the outer lead region, a second metal trace layer isarranged on the insulation layer covering the first metal trace layer ofthe outer lead region.

Projections of the traces of the two metal trace layers in the outerlead region intersect but not completely overlap and an intersectingposition is at two sides of the center line of the bending region or onthe center line of the bending region.

The present invention provides an organic light emitting diode displaypanel, comprising an array substrate, an outer lead region, an organiclight emitting diode light emitting layer overlapped on the arraysubstrate, a polarizer and a glass cover plate, and the array substratecomprises a substrate, wherein at least two metal trace layers which aremutually insulated are disposed on the outer lead region, a bendingregion is configured to the outer lead region, traces of the two metaltrace layers and a center line of the bending region are arranged with anon-orthogonal included angle and the two metal trace layers connect theorganic light emitting diode display panel with external electricalsignals.

The two metal trace layers are arranged in a thickness direction of theorganic light emitting diode display panel and are insulated by aninsulation layer.

The array substrate comprises a TFT (thin film transistor) switch and agate insulation layer formed on the substrate, wherein a first metaltrace layer of the two metal trace layers is arranged on the gateinsulation layer of the outer lead region, a second metal trace layer ofthe two metal trace layers is arranged on the insulation layer coveringthe first metal trace layer of the outer lead region.

Projections of the traces of the two metal trace layers in the outerlead region intersect but not completely overlap and an intersectingposition is at two sides of the center line of the bending region or onthe center line of the bending region.

The organic light emitting diode display device further comprises aflexible circuit board, wherein the flexible circuit board is connectedto the outer lead region and is coupled to the organic light emittingdiode display panel via the metal trace layers.

An OLED display device provided by the present invention comprises theOLED display panel.

As the outer lead region of the OLED display panel according to thepresent invention is bent toward the back side of the array substratealong the center line of the bending region, the included angle of thetraces of the two metal trace layers and the center line of the bendingregion is a non-orthogonal angle. Thus, as the traces are bent with thesubstrate, the bent direction of the traces is inclined. Once the tracecontact area is increased to reduce the stress of the unit length, thedirect stress to the traces can be reduced, accordingly to solve thetechnical problem that the metal trace layer is broken when the outerlead region is bent.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The structural features and effects of the present invention will bemore clearly described, which will now be described in detail withreference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a lateral view diagram of a structure of an OLED display panelof the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a lateral view diagram of a trace structure of an OLED displaypanel of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view diagram of a trace structure of an OLED displaypanel shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of traces and a bending center line of a tracestructure of an OLED display panel shown in FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

For better explaining the technical solution and the effect of thepresent invention, the present invention will be further described indetail with the accompanying drawings in the specific embodiments. Thefigures are for illustrative purposes only and are illustrative only butnot to be construed as limiting the present application.

Please refer to FIG. 1. The present invention provides a trace structureof an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display panel and an organiclight emitting diode display panel. The trace structure of the organiclight emitting diode display panel is applied on the organic lightemitting diode display panel to provide traces for connection of theOLED display panel and external electrical signals. The OLED displaypanel comprises an array substrate 10, an OLED light emitting layer 12overlapped on the array substrate 10, a polarizer 13 and a glass coverplate 14. The array substrate 10 comprises a substrate 101.

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the trace structure of the OLED displaypanel comprises an outer lead region 20. The outer lead region 20 is anextending end of the substrate. At least two metal trace layers whichare mutually insulated are disposed on the outer lead region 20. In thisembodiment, two metal trace layers are illustrated for explanation. Thetwo metal trace layers are a metal trace layer 21 and a metal tracelayer 22. A bending region is configured to the outer lead region 20.Traces of the two metal trace layers 21, 22 and a center line O of thebending region are arranged with a non-orthogonal included angle A (inFIG. 3) and the two metal trace layers connect the OLED display panelwith external electrical signals.

In other embodiments, the metal trace layers which are mutuallyinsulated can be three layers and configured to be overlapped. The threelayers are insulated with insulation layers. Certainly, metal tracelayers can be four layers to be insulated with insulation layers. It iswithin the scope of the present invention to design multiple metal tracelayers according to design requirements without affecting the bending ofthe outer lead region 20.

As shown in FIG. 2, furthermore, each of the metal trace layers can beformed with a plurality of metal lines which are spaced from oneanother. The metal trace layer 21 and the metal trace layer 22 arearranged in a thickness direction of the OLED display panel and areinsulated by an insulation layer 23. Both the traces of the metal tracelayer 21 and the metal trace layer 22 are led out from the two OLEDlight emitting layers 12 or are led out from the same layer and then arelayered through vias. In this embodiment, the metal trace layer 21 isunder the metal trace layer 22. The traces of the metal trace layer 22are disposed on the surface of the insulation layer 23 through the viaspassing through the insulation layer 23. Specifically, the arraysubstrate 10 comprises a TFT (thin film transistor) switch 101 and agate insulation layer 102 formed on the substrate 101. The first metaltrace layer (metal trace layer 21) is arranged on the gate insulationlayer 102 of the outer lead region 20. The second metal trace layer(metal trace layer 22) is arranged on the insulation layer 23 coveringthe first metal trace layer of the outer lead region 20. The tracewidths of the metal trace layer 21 and the metal trace layer 22 are 8 to10 μm. The pitches of the traces are 10 to 12 μm. The trace widths ofthe metal trace layer 21 increase. The resistance of the electricalsignals will decrease, correspondingly.

As shown in FIG. 3, projections of the traces of the two metal tracelayers in the outer lead region 20 intersect but not completely overlapand an intersecting position is at two sides of the center line O of thebending region or on the center line O of the bending region. As shownin FIG. 3, the traces of the metal trace layer 21 are extended from adriver chip and then, are bent to the right to continue extending andthe traces of the metal trace layer 22 are extended from the driver chipand then, are bent to the left to continue extending. For projections inthe outer lead region 20, the bending directions of the traces of thetwo metal trace layers are different, so the traces of the upper layerand the traces of the lower layer intersect in their projections.Certainly, as going to arrange a plurality of traces, the traces of eachlayer can be distributed in the entire area of the layer. Thus, thelayout of the metal traces in the outer lead region 20 of the presentinvention can increase the trace width and the pitch between two traces.Meanwhile, the stress of the unit length is decreased to ensure theyield of the metal traces for transmitting the electrical signals. Whena plurality of traces is required, the same trace width and the pitch asprior art can be achieved but the traces of one more whole layer thanprior art are provided and can be flexibly utilized.

The array substrate 10, the OLED light emitting layer 12, the polarizer13 and the glass cover plate 14 of the OLED display panel according tothe present invention are sequentially overlapped. The OLED lightemitting layer 12 further comprises TFT (thin film transistor) packagelayer 16. The OLED display panel controls the intensity of light emittedby the OLED light emitting layer 12 with the current. The external lightis easily reflected back to the OLED display panel and may affect thecontrast. The polarizer 13 can solve this issue to ensure the displayquality of the OLED display panel. The TFT package layer 16 possessesthe water-oxygen barrier property that can prevent the external waterand vapor from polluting the TFT switches.

As shown in FIG. 1, the OLED display panel further comprises a flexiblecircuit board 25. The flexible circuit board 25 is connected to theouter lead region 20 and is coupled to the OLED light emitting layer 12via a portion of the traces of the metal trace layers. The flexiblecircuit board 25 is installed in the outer lead region 20 by welding orinserting. A chip device 26 is further arranged in the outer lead region20. The chip device 26 is coupled to the OLED light emitting layer 12via a portion of the traces of the metal trace layers.

During the package or the case assembly of the OLED display panel, theouter lead region 20 is bent toward the back side of the array substrate10 along the center line of the bending region. The bent state of themetal traces is relevant with the bending degree. The bending degree isexpressed by a radius r of curvature. The smaller r is, the greater thebending degree is. The included angle A of the traces of the two metaltrace layers and the center line of the bending region is anon-orthogonal angle. As shown in FIG. 4, then as the traces are bentwith the substrate, the bent direction of the traces is inclined as athread. Once the trace contact area is increased to reduce the stress ofthe unit length, the direct stress to the traces can be reduced,accordingly. With the reasonable layout of the entire traces, theimpedance can be reduced to promote the anti-bending performance of thetraces in the outer lead region. Thus, the technical problem that ametal trace layer is broken when an outer lead region is bent can besolved.

The present invention further provides an OLED display device,comprising the OLED display panel.

The above provides only specific embodiments of the present inventionand the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Personswho are skilled in the art, change or replacement which is easilyderived should be covered by the protected scope of the invention. Thus,the protected scope of the invention should be determined according tothe appended claims only.

What is claimed is:
 1. A trace structure of an organic light emittingdiode display panel, wherein the organic light emitting diode displaypanel comprises an array substrate that comprises a first area in whichan organic light emitting diode light emitting layer is arranged and asecond area that is different from the first area and outside theorganic light emitting diode light emitting layer, the trace structurecomprising two metal trace layers that are disposed on the second areaof the array substrate, wherein two metal trace layers are mutuallyinsulated from each other, and a bending region is configured in thesecond area, such that traces of the two metal trace layers and a centerline of the bending region are arranged with a non-orthogonal includedangle, and wherein the two metal trace layers of the trace structure arearranged in the second area and outside the organic light emitting diodelight emitting layer to connect the organic light emitting diode lightemitting layer arranged in the first area to an external electricalsignal that is supplied from an external device mounted to the secondarea of the array substrate.
 2. The trace structure of the organic lightemitting diode display panel according to claim 1, wherein the two metaltrace layers are arranged in a thickness direction of the organic lightemitting diode display panel and are insulated by an insulation layerlocated between the two trace layers.
 3. The trace structure of theorganic light emitting diode display panel according to claim 1, whereinthe array substrate comprises a TFT (thin film transistor) switch and agate insulation layer formed in the first area and having a portionlocated in the second area, and wherein a first metal trace layer of thetwo metal trace layers is arranged on the portion of the gate insulationlayer that is located in the second area, and a second metal trace layerof the two metal trace layers is arranged on an insulation layer that islocated on and covers the first metal trace layer.
 4. The tracestructure of the organic light emitting diode display panel according toclaim 1, wherein projections of the traces of the two metal trace layersintersect but do not completely overlap and an intersecting position isat two sides of the center line of the bending region or on the centerline of the bending region.
 5. An organic light emitting diode displaypanel, comprising an array substrate having a first area and a secondarea different from the first area, an organic light emitting diodelight emitting layer, a polarizer, and a glass cover plate beingarranged in the first area of the array substrate, a trace structurecomprising two metal trace layers that are disposed in the second areaof the array substrate, wherein the two metal trace layers are mutuallyinsulated from each other, and a bending region is configured in thesecond area, such that traces of the two metal trace layers and a centerline of the bending region are arranged with a non-orthogonal includedangle, and wherein the two metal trace layers of the trace structure arearranged in the second area and outside the organic light emitting diodelight emitting layer to connect the organic light emitting diode lightemitting layer arranged in the first area to an external electricalsignal that is supplied from an external device mounted to the secondarea of the array substrate.
 6. The organic light emitting diode displaypanel according to claim 5, wherein the two metal trace layers arearranged in a thickness direction of the organic light emitting diodedisplay panel and are insulated by an insulation layer located betweenthe two trace layers.
 7. The organic light emitting diode display panelaccording to claim 5, wherein the array substrate comprises a TFT switchand a gate insulation layer formed in the first area and having aportion located in the second area, and wherein a first metal tracelayer of the two metal trace layers is arranged on the portion of thegate insulation layer that is located in the second area, and a secondmetal trace layer of the two metal trace layers is arranged on aninsulation layer that is located on and covers the first metal tracelayer.
 8. The organic light emitting diode display panel according toclaim 5, wherein projections of the traces of the two metal trace layersintersect but not completely overlap and an intersecting position is attwo sides of the center line of the bending region or on the center lineof the bending region.
 9. The organic light emitting diode display panelaccording to claim 5, wherein the external device mounted to second areaof the array substrate comprises a flexible circuit board, which isconnected to the organic light emitting diode light emitting layer viathe metal trace layers.
 10. The organic light emitting diode displaypanel according to claim 5, wherein the external device mounted tosecond area of the array substrate comprises a chip and the metal tracelayers of the trace structure is connected between the organic lightemitting diode light emitting layer and the chip.
 11. An organic lightemitting diode display device comprising an organic light emitting diodedisplay panel, wherein the organic light emitting diode display panelcomprises an array substrate having a first area and a second areadifferent from the first area, an organic light emitting diode lightemitting layer, a polarizer, and a glass cover plate being arranged inthe first area of the array substrate, a trace structure comprising twometal trace layers that are disposed in the second area of the arraysubstrate, wherein the two metal trace layers are mutually insulatedfrom each other, and a bending region is configured in the second area,such that traces of the two metal trace layers and a center line of thebending region are arranged with a non-orthogonal included angle, andwherein the two metal trace layers of the trace structure are arrangedin the second area and outside the organic light emitting diode lightemitting layer to connect the organic light emitting diode lightemitting layer arranged in the first area to an external electricalsignal that is supplied from an external device mounted to the secondarea of the array substrate.
 12. The organic light emitting diodedisplay device according to claim 11, wherein the two metal trace layersare arranged in a thickness direction of the organic light emittingdiode display panel and are insulated by an insulation layer locatedbetween the two trace layers.
 13. The organic light emitting diodedisplay device according to claim 11, wherein the array substratecomprises a TFT switch and a gate insulation layer formed in the firstarea and having a portion located in the second area, and wherein afirst metal trace layer of the two metal trace layers is arranged on theportion of the gate insulation layer that is located in the second area,and a second metal trace layer of the two metal trace layers is arrangedon an insulation layer that is located on and covers the first metaltrace layer.
 14. The organic light emitting diode display deviceaccording to claim 11, wherein projections of the traces of the twometal trace layers intersect but not completely overlap and anintersecting position is at two sides of the center line of the bendingregion or on the center line of the bending region.
 15. The organiclight emitting diode display device according to claim 11, wherein theexternal device mounted to second area of the array substrate comprisesa flexible circuit board, which is connected to the organic lightemitting diode light emitting layer via the metal trace layers.
 16. Theorganic light emitting diode display device according to claim 11,wherein the external device mounted to second area of the arraysubstrate comprises a chip and the metal trace layers of the tracestructure is connected between the organic light emitting diode lightemitting layer and the chip.